10 curious facts for t-shirt enthusiasts

Interesting t-shirt facts

After writing for so long about this classic garment, I realized there are some basic questions about t-shirts that I couldn’t answer. I knew James Dean made it popular but had no idea it was a men’s item only or that Fitzgerland was the first to officially use it.

So, I read many t-shirt facts and here 10 of my favorites. There plenty of them online but these are the ones that will actually stay with you and fun to share with someone. Consider it an update to our older post with t-shirt trivia.

Did you know that:

The word “T-shirt” was first used in 1920 by author F. Scott Fitzgerald. The word first appeared in the Merriam-Webster dictionary in the 1920’s.

2.T-Shirts were initially worn as undergarments by bachelors who didn’t know how to sew or replace buttons.

3. T-shirts were once made from what now we consider outrageous: alligator leather, cotton, yarn, gold, or human hair.

4. For a long time, T-Shirts were for men only, aimed to showcase the male figure.

5. James Dean popularized the T-Shirt as a fashion item and not just undergarment.

6. Tropix Togs are to „blame” for the pop culture craze around t-shirts. This was the first company to decorate them with pop icons and slogans in the 1950s. It held the original license for screen-printing Walt Disney characters.

7. Tie-Dye T-Shirts were iconic for the hippie movement, in the 60s

8. Only in the 70s did T-Shirts really enter popular culture for the first time. It’s when the “I <3 New York” campaign started, to change the perception of the city, from a dirty, crime-ridden place to a tourist destination.